


Love Means Something

by SalazarTipton



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alicante Tennis Academy AU, Alternate Universe - Sports, Alternate Universe - Tennis, Background Clary Fray/Isabelle Lightwood, Background Jocelyn Fairchild/Luke Garroway, Background Relationships, Background Simon Lewis/Jace Wayland, F/F, F/M, Gen, M/M, Rating May Change, Summer Camp, Summer Love, Tennis, Tennis Coaches, camp counselors
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-06
Updated: 2017-11-06
Packaged: 2019-01-30 03:31:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,938
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12645252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SalazarTipton/pseuds/SalazarTipton
Summary: Alec was pretty levelheaded when he first got to the Alicante Tennis Academy with Jace and Izzy: he was ready to hit the court, get decent training in, and work on his coaching skills–not worry about the drama from people or how anyone felt about his cool, focused exterior, but his very first day his world was flipped upside down on his way to dinner when he spotted Magnus, one of the coaches already there, working on his serve.





	Love Means Something

**Author's Note:**

> Based on this [moodboard series](http://autumnragnor.tumblr.com/tagged/tennis-au) I did for [shadowhuntersaumondays](https://shadowhuntersaumondays.tumblr.com/)! This was supposed to be part of a big bang, but things kinda fell apart...
> 
> Thank you so, soooo much to the wonderful [Elle](http://archiveofourown.org/users/magnusragnor/) for beta'ing this piece for me <3

“You drive like a grandma,” Isabelle complains from the backseat. “At this rate we’ll be there at the start of _next season_!”

 

“Hey, if you wanna drive the final stretch, just say so, Izzy,” Alec says with a smirk on his face.

 

“It’s a trap. Don’t fall for it. He’ll get music rights then and we’ll all die from boredom long before we even cross the state line,” Jace turns around to remind her.

 

When he and his siblings all received positions as coaches for the prestigious Alicante Tennis Academy, Alec wasn’t too sure about driving there together. Growing up, the three of them perfected pressing each other’s buttons in ways only siblings can: setting up someone else will get yelled at, “I’m not touching you,” annoying sounds, punch-buggy, and hiding each other’s homework right before school. Leaning on each other for support and guidance instead of bothering their busy mother made them know each other too well to the point where they know each button to press to piss the others off when prompted or bored. They love each other, but siblings have a specific brand of annoyance with each other when they’re confined in one space together for so long. It’s been a _long drive_.

 

His siblings chill out on the teasing for the rest of their ride, but Alec can feel the underlying tensions from being confined for so long as well as the nerves of starting their new jobs as tennis coaches. As he pulls into the Alicante Tennis Academy driveway, passing under the large sign and expanse of manicure lawns and shrubs, they all fall silent and prepare themselves.

 

Alec was excited when they left New York, but now all the little worries he’s tried to push out of his mind keep popping up. What if he does something wrong on his first day? What if he breaks one of the ball machines and they let him go? _What if, what if, what if…_

 

He pulls into the nearly empty parking lot in front of what seems to be the main office and shuts off his Jeep. Immediately, Isabelle and Jace jump out of the car and stretch their tight legs with smiles on their faces. Alec tries to mirror them, getting out slowly and shutting his door with care unlike the slamming his siblings are so fond of. They all look up to the building when the large front glass door opens.

 

A tall man clearly hiding defined muscles under his henley and warm-up pants takes his time coming down the small steps and stops in front of their parking spot. His smile is genuine, warm, and open--much like his eyes.

 

“You must be the Lightwoods,” the man says. “Welcome to Alicante Tennis Academy.”

 

“And you must be Luke Garroway,” Alec says, walking up to meet him and extending his hand in greeting. He recognizes him from half the instructional videos the academy has put out in the past five years. “I’m Alec Lightwood.” Luke shakes his hand with a warm smile.

 

Isabelle and Jace tag behind him and shake hands as well before Luke leads them into the building. “You’re the last of our new coaching staff to arrive. This is my office. If any of you need anything, please just swing by. The door’s always open, and if you can’t find me here I’m probably taking up some court space somewhere,” he explains, gesturing to the open door with “Tennis Director” above it with the O made out of cut tennis balls. The little detail makes the clean, modern lines of the mainroom inviting, less serious. The more Alec looks around the more little details he spots around the place that help it feel lived in.

 

“Simon, one of our other new coaches, should be by any minute to show you guys around the grounds, and answer any initial questions you have. He’ll also show you where you’ll be staying.”

 

“How many new coaches do you have for the summer?” Isabelle asks. Luke nods with a curt smile.

 

“All but one of you are new for this season. We had some internal rearrangements recently and are really looking forward to what you can all bring to the table,” Luke admits, his tone casual. “Tomorrow morning we’ll all meet to go over the details.”

 

A disheveled-looking guy with hair windblown, uneven socks, and well-worn tennis shoes stumbles through the back door with a tennis bag slung over his shoulder and pushes his glasses up further on his nose. “Hey, Luke! Saw you left your bag out on court three. Didn’t want the rain to--oh.” He stops rambling the moment he looks up and makes eye contact with Jace. “You, uh, yeah,” he nods to himself, setting Luke’s bag down next to him. Luke smiles at him with a shimmering of easy familiarity in his eyes.

 

“Simon, these are the Lightwoods, Alec, Isabelle, and Jace,” Luke quickly introduces them. “I have to make some phone calls. You good to show them around?”

 

Simon blinks away from Jace, nodding a little too fast. “Oh yeah. I got this. You go ahead and do all your...big important things. Not that showing you guys around isn’t important.”

 

Luke slaps him on the back and walks backward into his office giving him the I’m-watching-you motion, which Simon returns. When his office door closes, Simon turns back to them and claps his hands together. Alec can see Jace trying to fight back a smile.

 

“Lead the way,” Jace says, nice and slow complete with a snide tone and arms crossed over his chest, showing off his biceps under his henley.

 

Alec rolls his eyes at Jace’s antics. Even if they weren’t brothers, Alec could spot Jace posturing from a mile away. He’d been hoping they’d at least start coaching before he set his sights on someone. He wants this job to be something to give him experience coaching and do what he loves, not deal with behind the scenes drama. He wants to keep his head down and focus on tennis. He should know, by now, that his siblings will never let that happen.

 

Isabelle shakes her head at Jace, steps forward, and snakes her arm through Simon’s. “Don’t mind my brothers. They have terrible manners, but you’ll get used to it.”

 

Simon shows them the student dorms, clay courts, indoor courts, hard courts, gym, pool, and dining center. At first he’s stumbling through his words and can’t seem to pick who to focus on more: Isabelle or Jace. By the time he’s explaining their living situations, he’s acting like a normal person, by Alec’s standards.

 

“And here’s our housing. Each condo or townhouse or whatever you want to call it, really, has its own kitchenette and living area,” he explains as he walks up the stoop of the closest one with a large, brass number two nailed next to the door.

 

Simon awkwardly waits a little too long after showing them their living arrangements: Alec and Jace sharing a space together while Isabelle is two doors down, rooming with the person Luke mentioned earlier that hasn't arrived yet--that Simon promises they'll meet tomorrow morning, and that she's great. Jace is smirking at him when he finally turns to leave and watches until the door clicks shut behind him.

 

"Don't," Alec warns.

 

"Don't what? I haven't done anything," Jace says. He turns away from Alec, bag in hand, probably to go claim a room.

 

"This is a job. That is our co-worker. You know exactly what I'm saying," Alec replies.

 

He picks up his own bag. Before Jace has a chance to retort, Alec shoulders his way past him and takes the steps two-at-a-time to choose a room first. He hears Jace swear behind him and speeds up when Jace's footsteps thump up after him. There's a bit of a tussle resulting in Jace with the room facing the courtyard and Alec with the one looking out over the courts. Jace got the bigger closet.

 

Alec doesn't mind all that much. Waking up to see tennis courts sprawling out the window--the dew clinging to the clay, foggy along the paths as the sun rises--it's Alec's ideal life, really. It's what he's wanted since he became serious in tournament play, and then even more so when he started training for his USPTA test.

 

He'll bring the car over with the majority of their luggage after dinner. For now, exploring the grounds on a light run is a much more appealing prospect than unpacking.

 

Stepping back outside into the heat, he's glad he's trained in the South before. Sure, Florida is a little different from Texan weather, but compared to New York it's brutal. The courts must be at least 95 degrees right now.

 

The grounds seem to wind on forever in each direction. Beyond the french red clay courts lie the green clay courts outside of the domed semi-indoor courts behind the townhouses. Across from their courtyard are the student cabins in patterned rows making most of them easily seen from the sitting area in front of Alec's door, good for keeping an eye on the kids without over crowding them.

 

Alec runs beyond the main office where there's a sign hanging in the window: on the courts, back in ten. This side of the grounds has all the recreational activities: a swimming pool with a snack shack, gym, volleyball court, and a few things Alec can't quite make out in the buildings farther down.

 

Behind all this is the Academy. During the summers, Alicante holds camps for dedicated tennis players--only a few of which are students here. When September hits, the campers leave to make way for the students who board here during the school year. They’ll focus on tennis day in and day out with just enough schooling interspersed between court time.

 

This summer is Alec's trial run to become a full time coach here as well as join the English department for tutoring. Isabelle and Jace are just here for the summer, then they’re both off to college, leaving Alec alone for the first time since he was still an only child. When September rolls around, they'll both be off to their colleges and their studies, leaving Alec on his own for the first time in his life.

 

He's proud of his siblings with all they've accomplished and how far they've come. Alec helped raise them--still is, in some ways. Although he's the eldest, they've supported him throughout his entire life. He's too worried about them being on their own for the first time to realize he will be too.

 

By the time Alec loops around back to his townhouse, his thoughts are just starting to cool down with hope of a cold shower and getting dinner instead of all the uncertainty that plagued his mind on the long, long drive here.

 

"I talk about how we can relax now and you go for a run in the blistering heat," Jace says with the shake of his head from his spot on the couch, when Alec enters the room.

 

Alec ruffles Jace's hair before heading upstairs to shower. When he comes back down clean and dressed fifteen minutes later, Simon and Isabelle have joined Jace in watching something Alec's sure he has no interest in based on the amount fighting.

 

"Game of Thrones?"

 

"You watch?" Simon asks without looking away from the screen.

 

"Read the books."

 

Now with the sun rolling down the sky near the horizon, the walk to the cafeteria doesn't seem anywhere near as long without the baking heat. Isabelle's trying to convince Alec he should join them in the pool later and have a little fun before the kids arrive, but he doesn't catch anything after court nine comes into view.

 

There's a man practicing serves with his back to them. Alec's eyes follow the line of the ball toss, down his extended arm, over his muscular shoulders, down his sweat-soaked back, to his bent knees, and then back up when he jumps up into the toss and lands well within no-man's-land after the ball hits just inside the corner of the service box.

 

He mimes his service motion again to himself before turning back to the baseline. Alec wonders who hit the slowmo button on the universe just as the guy lifts his shirt to wipe the sweat from his eyes, exposing the toned lines of his stomach and abdomen.

 

"Magnus!"

 

Alec blinks and the slow motion seems to have turned itself off.

 

"Hey," the gorgeous guy on the court yells back to Simon, raising his racquet in a wave.

 

Alec follows as Simon makes his way over to the fence of court nine with a small creature tying his previously hungry stomach into a series of knots probably now resembling a child's macrame project.

 

“These are the Lightwoods, I presume,” he says, making his way over to the fence to greet them. “Isabelle, Jace, and Alexander?”

 

“Alec--well Alexander is fine, but most people call me Alec.” He fumbles with his words and ducks his head for a second before making eye contact.

 

The knots in his stomach melt away once Alec focuses on the man’s warm brown eyes and the sweat from the heat and activity shimmering on his lids. Light trickles of sweat roll over his temples when the guy’s cheeks lift in a honey-slow smile.

 

“I’m Magnus Bane. Most people just call me Magnus,” he jokes, breaking his eye contact with Alec with a wink before glancing over to his siblings. “I’ll see you guys in a bit. Just working on my toss.” With a nod, Magnus walks back to the hopper and resumes his serving.

 

They continue down the path, but Alec’s mind stays back at the fence stuck on Magnus’ voice and the curve and roll of his shoulders during his serve.

 

“Hello, earth to _Alexander_ ,” Isabelle says, waving a hand up in front of his face when they reach the steps to the cafe.

 

Alec nudges her to the side with his hip and rolls his eyes. “You sound like Mom.”

 

“Ouch! Just trying to keep you on your toes.”

 

The cafeteria is a simple room. Wood paneling shows the age of the addition to the campus while the various plaques, banners, and adornments hanging near the rafters attempt to tie it in with the history of the school to an effect similar to a grandmother wearing skinny jeans to keep up with the times. The tables with attached stools are lined all the way to the kitchen windows with a drink station on the far wall, coffee and tea beside it.

 

Simon explains how the kitchen and meal times work and shows them how to get their food. He sits himself at a table near the drinks’ station, settling in with a plateful of protein and a cup of tea and digs in while the rest of them decide on what to get. By the time Alec makes it over to the table with two waters, a coffee, chicken and more than enough greens, Magnus comes through the main door, setting his bag down beside it and bounds up to them.

 

“You mind?” Magnus asks, gesturing to one of Alec’s waters, slightly out of breath.

 

Alec hands it to him and waits while Magnus gulps down half of it in one go. Isabelle smiles at them over her own glass of juice, but doesn’t say a word. Jace looks way too occupied listening to Simon talk about the history of the building to be interested in this small exchange.

 

“Thanks,” he sighs out with a smile and finishes off the rest. “Guess I should have hydrated more, huh?”

 

“You’re not the only one a little thirsty,” Alec says, taking a long drag from his own glass.

 

He knew he should have had more to drink after his run earlier. Being so new to this kind of heat will take some getting used to and he refuses to be the one getting sun poisoning or something. As a coach, he wants to show responsibility and be a role model for the students, not be holded up in his bed with a headache he could have avoided.

 

When Alec’s sets his glass back down, he notices side glances coming from the others at the table. Magnus is smirking at him over Alec’s drained cup. Before he felt himself blanch, Alec stood up to fill his cup again.

 

 _That’s not how I meant that! I mean, yeah, but I didn’t mean to say it like that. Flirting is the last thing I want here. I just want to play and coach. I don’t need any distractions,_ Alec thinks to himself as he watches the water pour into his glass, swirling around the ice cubes. _Magnus probably didn’t even think anything of it. Looking like that, I’m sure he’s used to awkward flirting, right?_

 

“Guess you really are _thirsty_ ,” Magnus says from next to Alec.

 

He jolts from his thoughts to see he filled his cup enough for the water to breach the edges and slide down his fingers into the catching tray beneath. Alec lets out a soft laugh at himself and shakes his head. Better to play it off than confirm it, right?

 

Alec gives Magnus a tiny nod and heads back to the table in hopes of forgetting all this happened. He’s been here less than six hours and he’s already digging himself into a social hole. _Great way to fit in there, Alec._

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know what you think in the comments! What do you think's gonna happen next? Your thoughts mean the world to me (and kudos ain't so bad either <3 ). 
> 
> Come find me on tumblr: [peachstiles](http://peachstiles.tumblr.com/)


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